A FEDERAL INLAID MAHOGANY BRASS-MOUNTED TALL-CASE CLOCK

With brass-mounted ornament, this tall-case clock is an elaborate model made by craftsmen closely associated with the Willard clockmaking empire. The clockmaker, Elnathan Taber (1768-1854) was an apprentice of Simon Willard (1753-1848) and dials signed by the paint-decorator, William Prescott (1775-1803) are found on clocks made by Willard and his brothers Aaron (1757-1844) and Ephraim (1755-1832). For more on these artisans, see biographies in Paul J. Foley, Willard's Patent Time Pieces: A History of the Weight-Driven Banjo Clock, 1800-1900 (Norwell, MA., 2002).